This invention relates to a method of treating or preventing painful joint or muscle conditions by use of magnetic therapy, and to an apparatus for the treatment of such painful joint or muscle conditions.
Painful muscles and joints are common problems suffered at some time by a vast majority of people. The pain can be caused either by diseases such as arthritis, or by subjecting the body to stress and strain by various physical activities.
One such painful condition resulting from abnormal strain being put on the body is that of "arm pump-up" commonly suffered by moto-cross or enduro riders. It originates from vibrations caused by rough terrain, which are transmitted via the handlebars of a motorcycle to the arms of the rider.
The symptoms of arm pump-up are swollen forearms which become exceptionally hard to the touch and painful, sometimes even causing loss of control of wrists and hands. The area of the arm most affected is the carpal tunnel which is a fibrous bridge spanning the small bones at the base of the palm of the hand. Friction in the carpal tunnel creates pressure on the median nerve causing numbness, pins and needles, pain and weakness and even loss of control of the whole arm and hand.
Although arm pump-up is treatable, a prophylactic would obviously be more desirable in order to prevent its occurrence. As a result of the failure of conventional medicine to effectively treat certain medical conditions such as those described above, there is a growing tendency to explore the paths of alternative medicine.
One of these alternative practices is the use of magnetic therapy. Although it is not entirely clear how magnetic therapy works, it has been found to increase blood flow and therefore oxygen carrying capacity, to change the migration of calcium ions to or from the bone, to alter the pH balance of various body fluids, to alter hormone production from endocrine glands and to alter the enzymatic activity and other biochemical processes of the human body.